Stationary Queue Length Distribution for

M/M/1/K Queue with Non-Preemptive Service

Priorities
Amina Al-Sawaai, Rod Fretwell and Irfan Awan
School of Informatics, Department of Computing,
University of Bradford
Bradford, BD7 1DB, West Yorkshire
Email :{ a.s.m.al-sawaai, r.j.fretwell, i.u.awan}@Bradford.ac.uk}

Abstract—This paper studies the M/M/1/K queue under non-
preemptive service priority discipline. The paper shows the state
transition diagram of the Markov chain and presents the state
balance equations, from which the stationary queue length
distribution and other measures of interest can be obtained.
I. INTRODUCTION
Sharma and Virtamo [7] are study the finite buffer queues with
priorities. The arrival process is a Poisson and the service
times are i.i.d. with general distribution.
A single-server Markovian priority queuing system with two
classes of customers that arrive according to two independent
Poisson processes and require service of exponential
distribution arises in different contexts. There are two classes
of customers with high and low priority. It is often of interest

Q ueues and priority queues have many applications in real

life. In [1] a queue is a line of customers waiting for
to know the steady probabilities of the number of each type of
customers in the system. In this paper, we will discuss
M/M/1/K queue with non-preemptive and we will try to find
service. In most cases, the first customer in line is the first
customer to be served. The rule that determines who goes next the state probabilities of the model.
is called a queuing discipline. The simplest queuing discipline
is called FIFS, for "first-in-first-service." The most general The rest of this paper is organized as follows: analysis of
queuing discipline is priority queuing, in which each customer M/M/1/K queue with non-preemptive priority is described in
is assigned a priority, and the customer with the highest Section II. A detailed derivation of state transition
priority goes first, regardless of the order of arrival. probabilities at equilibrium follows in Section III. Conclusions
and future remarks are included in Section IV.
The subject of priority queues has been investigated by many
authors. There are two types of priority service disciplines: the
pre-emptive and the non-preemptive. The author in [2]
provides a generalized solution for the preemptive resume II. QUEUING MODEL
priority queues with infinite queue capacity. It considers
customers of M (>1) different priorities arriving with a Focusing on M/M/1/K queue with non-preemptive priority, for
Poisson process. priority system, we consider jobs of class 1 to be the lowest
priority and jobs of class 2 to be the highest priority. The job
Most of authors discuss analysis of M/M/1 queue with
arrival for class 1 is according to Poisson process with the
preemptive and non-preemptive priorities. For example, Marks
mean arrival rate λ 1 and the job arrival for class 2 is
[3] develops a technique for solving the state of the
probabilities of the model that results in a set of according to Poisson process with mean arrival rate λ 2 . The
computationally efficient recursion formulas that allow exact service times for both classes are exponentially distributed.
calculation of the state probabilities. Miller [4] present the The mean service rate of class 1 is µ 1 and the mean service
computational formulas for the steady-state distributions of rate of class 2 is µ 2 . We consider here two queues with non-
exponential single-server (preemptive and non preemptive) preemptive priority disciplines as shown on Fig. 1.
priority queue. The performance metrics with two classes of
customers are derived using Neuts’theory of matrix-geometric
invariant probability vectors. The Stephan [5] extends the
work of White and Christie [6] on preemptive priority
queueing.

ISBN: 1-9025-6016-7 © 2007 PGNet

 number of type 2 customers in the system and K is the type of
λ1 customer in service.

µ III. STATE EQUATIONS

We consider n is the maximum number of class 1 customers

in the system and m is the maximum number of class 2
λ2 customers in the system. p i , j is the probability that there are i
Fig. 1. Queue with non-preemptive priority
customers of class 1 and j customers of class 2 in the system
when customer of class 1 is in service. Ri , j is the probability
The approach is applied to single server with finite buffer. The that i customers of class 1 and j customers of class 2 in the
state transition diagram of the Markov chain is displayed in system when customer of class 2 is in service.
Fig. 2. The state (i, j, k) is: i the number of type 1 and j the

Fig. 2. State-Transition-Rate diagram for 2-Priority, Non-Preemptive M/M/1/K Queue for K=4
We used the state-transition-diagram in fig. 2. for deriving We are following the same way to derive the equilibrium
the equilibrium equations directly from the diagram. The equations for Ri , j .
equilibrium, the flow must be conserved in the sense that
the input flow equals the out put flow from a given state [1].
We consider the case m = 0 when non customer of class 2
(λ1 + λ 2 + µ 2 ) R0,1 = λ 2 p 0,0 + µ1 p1,1 + µ 2 R0, 2 (10)
in service with different value of i , we obtain :

(λ1 + λ 2 + µ 2 ) Ri ,1 = λ1 Ri −1,1 i = 1,2,......, n − 1 (11)

(λ1 + λ 2 ) p 0,0 = µ1 p1,0 + µ 2 R 0,1 (1)
(λ1 + λ 2 + µ 2 ) Ri , j = λ1 Ri −1, j + λ 2 Ri , j −1
(λ1 + λ 2 + µ1 ) p1,0 = λ1 p 0,0 + µ1 p 2,0 + µ 2 R1,1 (2)
j = 2,.., m − 1 (12)

(λ1 + λ 2 + µ1 ) p i , 0 = λ1 p i −1, 0 + µ1 p i +1, 0 + µ 2 Ri ,1 (λ1 + λ 2 + µ 2 ) R0, j = λ 2 R0, j −1 + µ1 p1, j + µ 2 R0, j +1

i = 2,3,...., n − 1 (3) j = 2,......, m − 1 (13)

(λ1 + µ 2 ) R0,m = λ 2 R0,m −1 + µ1 p1,m (14)

In Eq. 3, we find the general form of the equilibrium
equations at any i , for m=0. For m>0, the corresponding
general form for any value of i and j is given by Eq. 4. (λ1 + µ 2 ) Ri ,m = λ1 Ri −1,m + λ 2 Ri ,m −1 , i = 1,2,...n − 1 (15)
(λ2 + µ 2 ) Rn, j = λ1 Rn −1,m + λ 2 Rn,m −1 (16)

(λ1 + λ2 + µ1 ) pi, j = λ1 pi −1, j + λ2 pi, j −1 + µ1 pi+1, j + µ2 Ri, j +1

(λ2 + µ 2 ) Rn,1 = λ1 Rn −1,1 (17)
i = 2,3,......,n − 1, j = 1,2,.....,m − 1 (4)

From Eqs. 5-9, the state probabilities
number of class 1 and with maximum number of class 2,
when customer of class 1 is in service.
For example, when K=2 then we can use the state transition
pi , j with maximum diagram system to obtain the equilibrium equations, such as
the equations below:
(λ1 + λ 2 ) p0,0 = µ1 p1,0,1 + µ 2 p 0,1,2 (18)

(λ1 + λ 2 + µ1 ) p1,0,1 = λ1 p 0,0 + µ1 p 2,0,1 + µ 2 p1,1, 2 (19)

(λ1 + λ 2 + µ1 ) p1, j = λ 2 p1, j −1 + µ1 p 2, j + µ 2 R1, j +1
j = 1,2,..., m − 1 (5) µ1 p 2,0,1 = λ1 p1,01 (20)

(λ 2 + µ1 ) p n,0 = λ1 p n −1,0 + µ 2 Rn,1 ( 6) (λ1 + λ2 + µ 2 ) p0,1,2 = µ1 p1,1,1 + µ 2 p0,2, 2 + λ2 p0,0,0 (21)

(λ 2 + µ1 ) p n, j = λ1 p n −1, j + λ 2 p n, j −1 + µ 2 Rn, j +1 µ 2 p0, 2,2 = λ2 p0,1, 2 (22)

j = 1,2,..., m − 1 (7)
µ1 p1,1,1 = λ2 p1,0,1 (23)
(λ1 + µ1 ) pi ,m = λ1 pi −1,m + λ 2 pi ,m −1 + µ1 pi +1,m
i = 2,3,..., n − 1 (8) µ 2 p1,1, 2 = λ1 p0,1, 2 (24)

(λ1 + µ1 ) p1,m = λ 2 p1,m−1 + µ1 p 2,m (9) The steady state probabilities pi , j , K of the M/M/1/K Queue
with non-preemptive priority can be estimated by solving
the system of equilibrium equations.
 IV. CONCLUSION & FUTURE WORK

This paper has analysed the M/M/1/K queue with non –

preemptive priorities with a single server, Poisson arrivals
with finite capacity. The service times are exponentially
distribution. We are focusing on the Markov chain for the
M/M/1/K queue. In addition, we also derive the general
equilibrium equations for two indexes i and j of class 1 and
class 2.
Future work will focus on solving the system of
equilibrium equations by follow these steps:

• We write algorithm for M/M/1/K two-priority non-

preemptive system.

• We implement this algorithm in Matlab.

REFERENCES

[1] L. Kleinrock, Queueing Systems Vol.1: Theory, John Wiley, 1975.

[2] Wei Chang, “Preemptive Priority Queues,” Operations Research,
vol. 13, no.5, pp. 820-827, Sep.-Oct., 1965.
[3] Barry. I. Marks, “State Probabilities of M/M/1 Priority Queues,”
Operations Research, vol. 21, no.4, pp. 399-418, Jul.-Aug., 1973.
[4] D. R.Miller, “Computation of Steady-State Probabilities for M/M/1
Priority Queues,” Operations Research, vol. 29, no.5, pp. 945-958,
Sept.-Oct. 1981. ”
[5] F.F.Stephan, “Two Queue under Preemptive Priority with Poisson
Arrival and Service Rates”, Operations Research, vol. 6, no.3, pp. 399-
418, May.-Jun., 1958.
[6] Harrison White and Lee G. Christie, “Queueing with Preemptive
Priority or with Breakdown,” Opens. Res. 6, 79-96 (1958).
[7] V. Sharma and J. T.Virtamo, “A finite buffer queue with priorities,”
Performance Evaluation, vol. 47, no.1, pp.1-22, Jan. 2002.